Your BRIGHT Week in Review

Plus: Dinner and a Movie

Photo of the Week

You have to love it because something so silly made the Left so mad. Read: Is Donald Trump the one bringing back joy? (The Spectator)

CNN Data Expert Sees Good Signs for Trump, So Out Come the Hitler Comparisons

Fox News reported that CNN senior data reporter Harry Enten “marveled” at former President Trump’s significant gains among independent voters in key swing states. Enten pointed out that Trump now holds a slight lead over Vice President Kamala Harris among independents in Michigan, Pennsylvania, and Wisconsin, a reversal from the 2020 election when Democrats won this demographic by +5. Enten noted that while Trump’s current lead is within the margin of error, the trend is important, as winning the independent vote has historically been a strong predictor of presidential success. Since 1952, 15 of 18 presidential candidates who won the independent vote secured the presidency. Enten emphasized that the shift in independent support could be a promising sign for Trump’s chances in the 2024 election.

So, the Harris-Walz campaign is leaning into the tried but never true attack on all Republicans — they are Hitler! A quick Google search shows that at least the following have been called Hitler by Democrats: Richard Nixon, Ronald Reagan, Ron DeSantis, George W. Bush, John McCain, and Barry Goldwater. Even Benjamin Netanyahu got a turn. Points for creativity to Bill Maher for calling Romney’s staff “Hitler’s dead-end loyalists” and Laura Bush “Hitler’s dog.” 🙄

Electoral College Surprises to Come

Stephen Green of PJ Media analyzed potential surprises in the 2024 presidential election, focusing on key battleground states. He wrote that Trump appears strong in Pennsylvania, with a McDonald’s appearance boosting his odds, while Harris shows resilience in North Carolina and Nevada. Minnesota and Georgia are also in play. Polls and betting odds favor Trump, but unknown factors like Hurricane Helene in North Carolina and potential election interference in Philadelphia could shift outcomes.

He concluded:

I'm not sure what poll averaging is worth. Maybe it manages to smooth out the rough edges and arrive at something close to the truth. Or maybe nothing can account for human foibles and unknown-unknowns like how broad and effective the cheating will be this time around. 

Finally, if you'll let me go way out on the deep end, before the Democrats' intra-party coup swapped out Biden for Harris there were small indications that Virginia and New Hampshire might be in play. I'm discounting that talk because neither campaign is acting as though it might be true. 

But do keep a close eye on those two states on election night. The numbers there, no matter who wins each state, might prove to be a bellwether.

What state do you think will surprise us on election night?

Border Czar Endorses Amnesty

In an interview on MSNBC, Vice President Kamala Harris emphasized her commitment to a “pathway to citizenship” for undocumented immigrants if elected. In other words, amnesty for illegal immigrants. Breitbart reported that while discussing immigration, Harris acknowledged the importance of immigrants to the U.S. and said she supported enhanced border security. Harris clarified her stance on creating humane immigration reform, which includes securing the border and providing citizenship opportunities. While discussing the challenges of mass deportations and Temporary Protected Status, she reiterated the need for combining security and inclusivity in immigration policies, saying, “We need smart, humane immigration policy in America that includes a pathway to citizenship, putting more resources at the border in terms of security.”

A pathway always means amnesty because it never seems to come with any conditions to qualify. So why go to all the expense of enhancing the border if people would just get amnesty? Oh yeah, we still have an election to get through.

RELATED: 7 Takeaways From Harris Interview on NBC (The Epoch Times)

They’re Coming For Your Mowers

First the stoves, now the mowers. The left is on a path to lose all suburban voters. Pluribus News highlighted the growing political divide over gas-powered lawn equipment, as blue and red states take opposing views on regulating them. Democrat-led states like California, Colorado, and Vermont have implemented restrictions on gas-powered lawn tools, citing environmental concerns and noise pollution. California is the only state to ban new gas-powered equipment sales. Other blue states are considering similar measures.

Republican-led states like Georgia and Texas have passed laws preventing local governments from imposing such restrictions. Advocates for electric alternatives push for a shift to cleaner, quieter tools, while opponents argue that battery technology is not yet sufficient for commercial use. Local governments in conservative states are finding creative ways to encourage electric equipment use, such as offering financial incentives. The EPA is also pushing the belief that gas-powered lawn equipment contribute heavily to air pollution and carbon emissions.

What I’m Reading This Week

I’m a huge Elvis fan and the Oprah Book Club sticker didn’t deter me from buying From Here to the Great Unknown, the first book from Lisa Marie Presley, and finished by her daughter, Riley Keough. From the description:

In 2022, Lisa Marie Presley asked her daughter to help finally finish her long-gestating memoir.

A month later, Lisa Marie was dead, and the world would never know her story in her own words, never know the passionate, joyful, caring, and complicated woman that Riley loved and now grieved.
 
Riley got the tapes that her mother had recorded for the book, lay in her bed, and listened as Lisa Marie told story after story about smashing golf carts together in the yards of Graceland, about the unconditional love she felt from her father, about being upstairs, just the two of them. About getting dragged screaming out of the bathroom as she ran toward his body on the floor. About living in Los Angeles with her mother, getting sent to school after school, always kicked out, always in trouble. About her singular, lifelong relationship with Danny Keough, about being married to Michael Jackson, what they had in common. About motherhood. About deep addiction. About ever-present grief. Riley knew she had to fulfill her mother’s wish to reveal these memories, incandescent and painful, to the world.

To make her mother known.

UPDATE: I can’t put this book down. I’ll probably finish it as soon as I’m done with BRIGHT!

Dinner and a Movie

The Atlantic’s hail Mary for the Harris-Walz campaign had us thinking about the 2003 movie, Shattered Glass. A New Republic reporter is brought down thanks to what a story they wanted to be true. The exposure of this hack who lied about wild sex parties with minibars packed with alcohol at the CPAC hotel happened the year before I got involved with CPAC. It was a legendary takedown thanks to my old boss, David Keene, noticing a little thing like the CPAC hotel not having any minibars.

A challenge for my mom that I don’t think she’ll take — Chicken Cordon Bleu from scratch! Maybe a good daughter would make it for her 😇